


Walking Wounded

by MusicalLuna



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Depressed Steve Rogers, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, POV Tony Stark, Steve Rogers & Tony Stark Friendship, Steve Rogers Feels, Steve Rogers Needs a Hug, Steve Rogers and the 21st Century, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2017-11-26
Packaged: 2019-06-12 06:03:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15333408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MusicalLuna/pseuds/MusicalLuna
Summary: “Hey, Cap,” Tony says, aiming for casual, but sounding wary even to his own ears.“I’m fine,” Steve murmurs and Tony pauses at the counter in front of the coffee maker, closing his eyes. He rubs the bridge of his nose.Okay, they’re doing this then.





	Walking Wounded

Steve has been walking around the Tower like a ghost for the last week.

It’s February and the gloomiest it’s been all winter; during the day it rains and at night it snows, not heavily, but unceasingly.

Everyone is a little bit antsy as a result, but Cap has been prowling around in thick knitted sweaters clutching steaming mugs and staring out the water-speckled windows. His usually clear gaze is distant and unfocused and honestly it’s giving Tony the heebie jeebies. He doesn’t know where it is Steve’s gone in his head, but it’s not here.

Tony tries to keep the unsettle off his face when he emerges from his workshop, but Cap doesn’t make it easy, and near the end of the week it all comes to a head.

Thursday afternoon he comes up to get coffee and he’s hoping to run into Natasha so they can exchange a few barbs, but Steve is the only one in the kitchen. He’s sitting at the counter with a mug, eyes fixed on the grey mess outside.

“Hey, Cap,” Tony says, aiming for casual, but sounding wary even to his own ears.

“I’m fine,” Steve murmurs and Tony pauses at the counter in front of the coffee maker, closing his eyes. He rubs the bridge of his nose.

Okay, they’re doing this then.

“Well, that’s a load of horseshit if I’ve ever heard it,” he says, falsely bright and turns back around.

Steve’s eyes drag over to look through him and for a second Tony thinks he’s going to say he’s fine again. Instead, he says hollowly, “Yeah, maybe.” He sighs and digs his fingers into his forehead. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Tried that. Didn’t work. Time to try something else. What’s your deal?”

Steve blinks at him slowly and shrugs. “Dunno.”

Tony looks at him, really looks at him, and the way he’s hunched over the mug clutched in his hands like he thinks he’ll go flying off into outer space if he eases up, the dark shadows under his dull eyes. It’s a look Tony’s seen in the mirror more than a few times.

He fills up a mug, and as he does, asks, “You mind if I sit with you?”

“Not very good company.”

“Did I ask you to be?”

“It’s your home,” Steve mutters.

Tony’s a little bit alarmed by the fact that he recognizes Steve is trying to push him away. “You’re right, it is,” he replies and plops down carelessly into the seat right next to Steve, with enough force to inch it that much closer to Steve’s.

Their arms touch and Steve eyes him suspiciously. “What are you doing?”

“Coffee.” Tony lifts his mug in illustration. “What are you doing?”

Steve looks back down at his own mug, still full and apparently untouched. He shakes his head.

Tony leans into him a little, reaching across him to activate the holoscreen on the counter. He can feel Steve’s eyes on his face, his awkward, reluctant attempt to shift away from where Tony’s touching him. “You don’t mind do you?”

Steve’s forehead creases. “Mind what?”

Tony jostles Steve’s arm a little, nudges a little closer so he’s pressed up against Steve from knee to hip.

“Not if you don’t,” Steve says slowly. He still seems confused and Tony wonders if it’s because he’s forgotten what casual contact felt like, or if it’s because he hasn’t been sleeping. Maybe both.

He’s watching Tony manipulate the holoscreen with that crease on his forehead still, and Tony grimly thinks,  _Both_. “You’re a fantasy nerd, right?”

“I—what’s that? Nerd?”

“Nevermind. You like Lord of the Rings?”

“Yes,” Steve says, and deep suspicion pushes back the fog in his gaze momentarily.

“Has anyone introduced you to D&D yet?”

“D and D? I don’t think so. What is it?”

“Dungeons and Dragons. It’s a game.”

“Like…cards?”

Tony smiles and settles in as he pulls up the first episode of Critical Role. “Kind of not at all. Watch this, I think you’ll like it. You don’t have anywhere to be, do you?”

“No,” Steve murmurs, frowning as he looks between the video starting on the screen and Tony plastered up against his side. “Don’t you?”

“Nah,” Tony replies. He’ll grovel for Pepper later. “Now listen or we’ll have to start it over.”

They watch through the character bios before Steve starts to squirm.

“What? What is it?”

“Is there a reason we’re watching this here?”

“You were here, I was here, there’s video here. Why, you want to move to the couch?” Steve’s gaze darts away like he wishes he hadn’t opened his mouth and before he can answer, Tony nudges him with a hip. “Let’s move to the couch, this is four hours long, our asses will thank us.”

“ _Four hours?_ ” Steve says, but moves where Tony guides him. He hesitates when they get to the couch, and Tony isn’t about to let him weasel his way out of this now, not when he’s got him right where he wants him, so he throws himself down half on top of Steve’s lap and calls, “JARVIS, big screen.”

The video immediately picks up where they left off, filling the screen on the wall.

Steve is stiff as a rock under Tony, but he doesn’t say anything, possibly because Tony steamrolls over the possibility by beginning to explain the basics of the game while they work out the audio issues. That gets the gears in his souped-up brain turning and when he starts to relax and ask more questions, Tony relaxes, too.

An hour in, Steve’s hand is warm on Tony’s shoulder and he lets out a low, rusty laugh. Tony all but glows with pride. Okay, so he handled that pretty well, all said and done. He can make this work.


End file.
